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Classroom Heroes Rescue Teacher

Aired December 19, 2003 - 15:08   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, you got to love this story.
At a high school east of Atlanta, some students gifted with courage gave an early Christmas present to one of their favorite teachers. In just a moment, we'll meet some of those classroom heroes.

But first, their heroic story from Doug Richards of CNN affiliate WAGA here in Atlanta.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEBBIE SHULTZ, TEACHER: When the door flew open, I certainly never expected to see him standing there brandishing a knife.

DOUGLAS RICHARDS, WAGA REPORTER (voice-over): Debbie Shultz says her estranged husband, Theodore Shultz, lunged past a dozen students in a trailer classroom and attacked her with a knife.

SHULTZ: And he just stared at me for one moment, almost dramatic effect. And then he lifted the knife and started rushing toward me.

RICHARDS (on camera): Was your instinct at all to get out of there instead of rush this guy with the knife?

NIMESH PATEL, STUDENT: At first, it was. But then I kind of froze there a second. I looked at the door and then I looked back and I saw her. And I realized that I had to help her.

KENNETH NAYLOR, STUDENT: A couple of buddies of mine were in the class and they took him down. And he was already pinned down on the ground. And Ms. Shultz was still on top of him. She didn't want to leave us with the guy.

SHULTZ: And they were saying Shultz, Shultz, get out of here. Go. Go. We've got him. I said, not as long as he's got the weapon. I'm not leaving you.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's the problem, ma'am?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, it appears that there's someone trying to take a teacher's life.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

RICHARDS (voice-over): Meantime, staff at the school and a student called 911.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's a man who came into our classroom with a knife. He's trying to stab our teacher.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

RICHARDS: Moments later, Debbie Shultz took the cell phone from the sobbing student and calmly asked for an ambulance.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you all right?

SHULTZ: I probably need medical attention.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

RICHARDS (on camera): Should we be surprised that these kids reacted this way on behalf of this teacher?

PATEL: No, I don't think so. I mean, she was loved by all her students. She was a great teacher.

NAYLOR: Everybody in the school that has her loves her to death, like, as a teacher. And that's why they would do anything in the world to help her out when she's in need.

SHULTZ: The students at Heritage High School are beyond anything I could have conceived or comprehended. And I owe them my life. It's going to be a merry Christmas. I'm happy to be alive.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, thanks to Doug Richards of affiliate WAGA for that.

And joining us now live from Conyers, outside Atlanta, Georgia, teacher Debbie Shultz and some of the Heritage High School students who were a part of saving her. On the left of your screen is Austin Hutchinson. And on the right of your screen is John Bailey. And there's a few others in the back there. Time does not permit us all to introduce them all.

I notice you're holding hands. Tell us about the bond that you have between teacher and student here. Kind of unusual, isn't it, Debbie?

SHULTZ: Well, it's a lot more cemented since Wednesday's incident. but we always like to conduct our classes as though we're a family. And it was our first-period Spanish II family. And boy, am I glad it was. They're heroes in every sense of the word.

And we at Heritage always knew they were heroes, but now the whole world does.

O'BRIEN: Austin, let's begin with you. Did have you ever have any hesitation, any doubt, any fear? Or was it just kind of a reflex reaction?

AUSTIN HUTCHINSON, HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT: At first, I was scared. And I thought, well, I could run out the door like the rest of the people, but something just told me that it wasn't right to leave her there. So I just decided to stay back and just do what I could to help, and just get the guy off of her, anything that would help.

O'BRIEN: You went after somebody with a very sharp knife. You weren't concerned about getting hurt?

HUTCHINSON: Well, I was concerned about getting hurt. But, at the time, that was really the least of my worries. It was just keeping her safe and just doing what I could.

O'BRIEN: John Bailey, same kind of thought process for you? Was it kind of just a reflex reaction?

JOHN BAILEY, HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT: No. There was a lot of hesitation for me.

(LAUGHTER)

O'BRIEN: Hopefully not too much.

BAILEY: No. It wasn't too much.

But like Austin said, you really wanted to help your teacher in this situation. She does so much for us. And I just felt like I had to help her out.

O'BRIEN: And this whole scene, at what point -- I bet, afterwards, when you sort of thought about what transpired, it might have been even more scary for everybody. Would you go along with that?

BAILEY: Yes. It had to be very scary.

But, at the same time, it was more of a shock, because you never think about going to school and something like this happening to you.

O'BRIEN: Yes.

Now, you mention that, but, at this school in '99 -- and I guess you guys wouldn't have been at the school at the time, but you certainly would have heard about it.

SHULTZ: I was there.

O'BRIEN: There was a shooting there. And I know you were there, Debbie. It's unfortunate -- and we're talking about a shooting incident where six were injured at that time. And you were involved in that. Did you sort of have kind of a flashback to that moment when all this occurred, or did you have time to even process that way?

SHULTZ: I did not have time -- yes, violence affects you in a way that it's surreal. And, yes, I had the same immediate reaction. Oh, this is a joke.

But then I quickly ascertained it was not a joke and flew into action. But I was so -- after the event was over, I said, God allows things to happen to us for a reason. And the reason, I fully believe, is not only to reveal the issues of domestic violence, but the whole sort of world got a bad rap or an impression of our school when we had our shooting. And that was an atypical instance.

These are the typical students of Heritage High School, heroes in every sense of the world. The most kind, compassionate students that you could ever find in the United States. And so what was intended for evil worked for good. And I am so grateful, because, without them, I would not be alive.

O'BRIEN: I got to tell you, Debbie, you win the half-full award of the day. Your estranged husband come in and tries to kill you and you're spinning this as a tale which is kind of heartwarming. I'm impressed.

SHULTZ: Well, thank you so much. I think it's due to my great faith, but, also, my students are my inspiration.

And I have always listed by the philosophy that, if you love them first and then worry about your content area second, everything will always fall into place. And so far, the last 17 years, God has blessed me.

O'BRIEN: Austin, and I know she's right there and you might be accused of doing a little apple shining, but just give us a sense of what kind of a teacher Debbie Shultz is.

SHULTZ: OK. I'll look the other way.

(LAUGHTER)

HUTCHINSON: She's a great teacher. I mean, everybody really loves her. And you hardly hear any bad about her. She's just -- she's a great teacher and wonderful. And she bonds real great, not just on a teacher basis, but almost on like a motherly basis. And she's just -- she's a great person.

O'BRIEN: And, John, would you go along with that? Is she one of those special teachers? As we look back on our school careers, there's only a few teachers that I think we all remember as adults. Is Debbie one of them? And I'm not talking about just because of this incident, but before this incident, would she have been one of those teachers?

BAILEY: Definitely. She does so much for us as a whole.

Instead of making us remember what we learned, she instills it in our head. That way, later on in life, we can always go back to that point and we can remember what she taught us. And she's just a great person. And I think that's why we all love her so much.

O'BRIEN: And the back row is not miked, but do you all agree with that? Just, say, raise your hand or something, say yes?

(CROSSTALK)

O'BRIEN: Are you with that?

Debbie, what's the moral of the story here? I assume that you have some fear about your estranged husband, but I can't imagine you ever suspected this to happen, especially in front of your kids.

SHULTZ: No.

O'BRIEN: And I bet, if you had the chance, you'd prefer they didn't witness all of this.

SHULTZ: Oh, if I had the chance...

O'BRIEN: They're young adults, but they're still teenagers, you know?

SHULTZ: The previous week, as a matter of fact, I had taken out a temporary protection order on the previous Tuesday, a week prior to the event.

And the moral of that story is, a temporary restraining order or protection order, is not the way to go. I am a blessed survivor of domestic violence. And I would strongly urge any woman or man who is being persecuted to get a criminal warrant and use that as the first route, instead of a temporary protection order or a restraining order, to get a criminal warrant for stalking, criminal trespass, harassment, phone calls, e-mails, and document, document, document.

I don't care if someone is sitting in front of your house for only five minutes. Call the sheriff and go on record. Call your police department and go on record. And perhaps, had I chosen that route, although I only -- I chose the route which I was advised to take at the time. I did not know any better because it had never happened to me before.

But I'm one of the lucky ones. If this were to ever happen in my life again, I would have a second chance. And most victims of domestic violence don't have heroes surrounding them and guardian angels to save them.

And had I been 40 minutes later, had I been in the trailer by myself, I would not be telling you what the proper procedure could be.

O'BRIEN: Austin -- and those are good words. I hope that is a little message that resonates with people, where that message is important.

Austin, do you feel like a hero?

HUTCHINSON: I don't really feel like a hero. I mean, I've been getting a lot of attention lately. But I just feel like I'm a person that just did what he had to do, just did what I thought was right. And I don't feel like anybody special. I just did anything anybody else would have done.

O'BRIEN: You learned a lesson. Is it a lesson you wish you didn't have to learn.

HUTCHINSON: Well, in a sense, I kind of wish that it would have never happened, but -- although it did happen, and there's no changing it, I'm glad that the way it came out wasn't as bad as it possibly could have been.

O'BRIEN: And, finally, John, I want to just end with you. I asked Austin the same question. Do you feel like a hero? Do you feel comfortable being called that term?

BAILEY: No.

But I am glad that I was able to help her, to help save her life. But I don't feel like a hero. And I don't think I'll ever feel like a hero at this point. I was just doing what I felt was right, protecting my teacher, because she would do the same thing for us.

O'BRIEN: And, Debbie, one final thought. A's for everybody involved here?

(LAUGHTER)

SHULTZ: Oh, absolutely. It's a done deal.

(LAUGHTER)

SHULTZ: No, actually, they already earned them. And they're going to get rewarded far beyond anything I could ever bestow on them. They're heroes.

O'BRIEN: All right, what kids will do for grades these days.

(LAUGHTER)

O'BRIEN: All right, Debbie Shultz, Austin Hutchinson, John Bailey and the rest of the crew, we're sorry we didn't have time to talk to all of you, but we really appreciate you joining us and telling us your story.

SHULTZ: Thank you so much.

O'BRIEN: A harrowing tale, but a tale with, we're glad to report, a happy ending.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired December 19, 2003 - 15:08   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, you got to love this story.
At a high school east of Atlanta, some students gifted with courage gave an early Christmas present to one of their favorite teachers. In just a moment, we'll meet some of those classroom heroes.

But first, their heroic story from Doug Richards of CNN affiliate WAGA here in Atlanta.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEBBIE SHULTZ, TEACHER: When the door flew open, I certainly never expected to see him standing there brandishing a knife.

DOUGLAS RICHARDS, WAGA REPORTER (voice-over): Debbie Shultz says her estranged husband, Theodore Shultz, lunged past a dozen students in a trailer classroom and attacked her with a knife.

SHULTZ: And he just stared at me for one moment, almost dramatic effect. And then he lifted the knife and started rushing toward me.

RICHARDS (on camera): Was your instinct at all to get out of there instead of rush this guy with the knife?

NIMESH PATEL, STUDENT: At first, it was. But then I kind of froze there a second. I looked at the door and then I looked back and I saw her. And I realized that I had to help her.

KENNETH NAYLOR, STUDENT: A couple of buddies of mine were in the class and they took him down. And he was already pinned down on the ground. And Ms. Shultz was still on top of him. She didn't want to leave us with the guy.

SHULTZ: And they were saying Shultz, Shultz, get out of here. Go. Go. We've got him. I said, not as long as he's got the weapon. I'm not leaving you.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's the problem, ma'am?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, it appears that there's someone trying to take a teacher's life.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

RICHARDS (voice-over): Meantime, staff at the school and a student called 911.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There's a man who came into our classroom with a knife. He's trying to stab our teacher.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

RICHARDS: Moments later, Debbie Shultz took the cell phone from the sobbing student and calmly asked for an ambulance.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you all right?

SHULTZ: I probably need medical attention.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

RICHARDS (on camera): Should we be surprised that these kids reacted this way on behalf of this teacher?

PATEL: No, I don't think so. I mean, she was loved by all her students. She was a great teacher.

NAYLOR: Everybody in the school that has her loves her to death, like, as a teacher. And that's why they would do anything in the world to help her out when she's in need.

SHULTZ: The students at Heritage High School are beyond anything I could have conceived or comprehended. And I owe them my life. It's going to be a merry Christmas. I'm happy to be alive.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, thanks to Doug Richards of affiliate WAGA for that.

And joining us now live from Conyers, outside Atlanta, Georgia, teacher Debbie Shultz and some of the Heritage High School students who were a part of saving her. On the left of your screen is Austin Hutchinson. And on the right of your screen is John Bailey. And there's a few others in the back there. Time does not permit us all to introduce them all.

I notice you're holding hands. Tell us about the bond that you have between teacher and student here. Kind of unusual, isn't it, Debbie?

SHULTZ: Well, it's a lot more cemented since Wednesday's incident. but we always like to conduct our classes as though we're a family. And it was our first-period Spanish II family. And boy, am I glad it was. They're heroes in every sense of the word.

And we at Heritage always knew they were heroes, but now the whole world does.

O'BRIEN: Austin, let's begin with you. Did have you ever have any hesitation, any doubt, any fear? Or was it just kind of a reflex reaction?

AUSTIN HUTCHINSON, HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT: At first, I was scared. And I thought, well, I could run out the door like the rest of the people, but something just told me that it wasn't right to leave her there. So I just decided to stay back and just do what I could to help, and just get the guy off of her, anything that would help.

O'BRIEN: You went after somebody with a very sharp knife. You weren't concerned about getting hurt?

HUTCHINSON: Well, I was concerned about getting hurt. But, at the time, that was really the least of my worries. It was just keeping her safe and just doing what I could.

O'BRIEN: John Bailey, same kind of thought process for you? Was it kind of just a reflex reaction?

JOHN BAILEY, HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT: No. There was a lot of hesitation for me.

(LAUGHTER)

O'BRIEN: Hopefully not too much.

BAILEY: No. It wasn't too much.

But like Austin said, you really wanted to help your teacher in this situation. She does so much for us. And I just felt like I had to help her out.

O'BRIEN: And this whole scene, at what point -- I bet, afterwards, when you sort of thought about what transpired, it might have been even more scary for everybody. Would you go along with that?

BAILEY: Yes. It had to be very scary.

But, at the same time, it was more of a shock, because you never think about going to school and something like this happening to you.

O'BRIEN: Yes.

Now, you mention that, but, at this school in '99 -- and I guess you guys wouldn't have been at the school at the time, but you certainly would have heard about it.

SHULTZ: I was there.

O'BRIEN: There was a shooting there. And I know you were there, Debbie. It's unfortunate -- and we're talking about a shooting incident where six were injured at that time. And you were involved in that. Did you sort of have kind of a flashback to that moment when all this occurred, or did you have time to even process that way?

SHULTZ: I did not have time -- yes, violence affects you in a way that it's surreal. And, yes, I had the same immediate reaction. Oh, this is a joke.

But then I quickly ascertained it was not a joke and flew into action. But I was so -- after the event was over, I said, God allows things to happen to us for a reason. And the reason, I fully believe, is not only to reveal the issues of domestic violence, but the whole sort of world got a bad rap or an impression of our school when we had our shooting. And that was an atypical instance.

These are the typical students of Heritage High School, heroes in every sense of the world. The most kind, compassionate students that you could ever find in the United States. And so what was intended for evil worked for good. And I am so grateful, because, without them, I would not be alive.

O'BRIEN: I got to tell you, Debbie, you win the half-full award of the day. Your estranged husband come in and tries to kill you and you're spinning this as a tale which is kind of heartwarming. I'm impressed.

SHULTZ: Well, thank you so much. I think it's due to my great faith, but, also, my students are my inspiration.

And I have always listed by the philosophy that, if you love them first and then worry about your content area second, everything will always fall into place. And so far, the last 17 years, God has blessed me.

O'BRIEN: Austin, and I know she's right there and you might be accused of doing a little apple shining, but just give us a sense of what kind of a teacher Debbie Shultz is.

SHULTZ: OK. I'll look the other way.

(LAUGHTER)

HUTCHINSON: She's a great teacher. I mean, everybody really loves her. And you hardly hear any bad about her. She's just -- she's a great teacher and wonderful. And she bonds real great, not just on a teacher basis, but almost on like a motherly basis. And she's just -- she's a great person.

O'BRIEN: And, John, would you go along with that? Is she one of those special teachers? As we look back on our school careers, there's only a few teachers that I think we all remember as adults. Is Debbie one of them? And I'm not talking about just because of this incident, but before this incident, would she have been one of those teachers?

BAILEY: Definitely. She does so much for us as a whole.

Instead of making us remember what we learned, she instills it in our head. That way, later on in life, we can always go back to that point and we can remember what she taught us. And she's just a great person. And I think that's why we all love her so much.

O'BRIEN: And the back row is not miked, but do you all agree with that? Just, say, raise your hand or something, say yes?

(CROSSTALK)

O'BRIEN: Are you with that?

Debbie, what's the moral of the story here? I assume that you have some fear about your estranged husband, but I can't imagine you ever suspected this to happen, especially in front of your kids.

SHULTZ: No.

O'BRIEN: And I bet, if you had the chance, you'd prefer they didn't witness all of this.

SHULTZ: Oh, if I had the chance...

O'BRIEN: They're young adults, but they're still teenagers, you know?

SHULTZ: The previous week, as a matter of fact, I had taken out a temporary protection order on the previous Tuesday, a week prior to the event.

And the moral of that story is, a temporary restraining order or protection order, is not the way to go. I am a blessed survivor of domestic violence. And I would strongly urge any woman or man who is being persecuted to get a criminal warrant and use that as the first route, instead of a temporary protection order or a restraining order, to get a criminal warrant for stalking, criminal trespass, harassment, phone calls, e-mails, and document, document, document.

I don't care if someone is sitting in front of your house for only five minutes. Call the sheriff and go on record. Call your police department and go on record. And perhaps, had I chosen that route, although I only -- I chose the route which I was advised to take at the time. I did not know any better because it had never happened to me before.

But I'm one of the lucky ones. If this were to ever happen in my life again, I would have a second chance. And most victims of domestic violence don't have heroes surrounding them and guardian angels to save them.

And had I been 40 minutes later, had I been in the trailer by myself, I would not be telling you what the proper procedure could be.

O'BRIEN: Austin -- and those are good words. I hope that is a little message that resonates with people, where that message is important.

Austin, do you feel like a hero?

HUTCHINSON: I don't really feel like a hero. I mean, I've been getting a lot of attention lately. But I just feel like I'm a person that just did what he had to do, just did what I thought was right. And I don't feel like anybody special. I just did anything anybody else would have done.

O'BRIEN: You learned a lesson. Is it a lesson you wish you didn't have to learn.

HUTCHINSON: Well, in a sense, I kind of wish that it would have never happened, but -- although it did happen, and there's no changing it, I'm glad that the way it came out wasn't as bad as it possibly could have been.

O'BRIEN: And, finally, John, I want to just end with you. I asked Austin the same question. Do you feel like a hero? Do you feel comfortable being called that term?

BAILEY: No.

But I am glad that I was able to help her, to help save her life. But I don't feel like a hero. And I don't think I'll ever feel like a hero at this point. I was just doing what I felt was right, protecting my teacher, because she would do the same thing for us.

O'BRIEN: And, Debbie, one final thought. A's for everybody involved here?

(LAUGHTER)

SHULTZ: Oh, absolutely. It's a done deal.

(LAUGHTER)

SHULTZ: No, actually, they already earned them. And they're going to get rewarded far beyond anything I could ever bestow on them. They're heroes.

O'BRIEN: All right, what kids will do for grades these days.

(LAUGHTER)

O'BRIEN: All right, Debbie Shultz, Austin Hutchinson, John Bailey and the rest of the crew, we're sorry we didn't have time to talk to all of you, but we really appreciate you joining us and telling us your story.

SHULTZ: Thank you so much.

O'BRIEN: A harrowing tale, but a tale with, we're glad to report, a happy ending.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com